


Growth

by elwon



Series: JayDick Flash Fic [10]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Character Study, Dick's terrible flirting in YJ, M/M, Not so accidental baby acquisition, Pre-Slash, jaydick-flashfic: growth, probably never going to happen in canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-05-07 05:31:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19202881
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elwon/pseuds/elwon
Summary: Dick’s small second family got bigger with the introduction of the new Robin... It’s got even bigger than Dick realises by the time he meets Jason Todd again.





	Growth

Dick throws Jason down to the Cave training area mats, and pins him down for the fourth time in a row. Jason’s a good fighter, but Dick has not only height and weight on him; he also has years of training with not only Batman, but multiple metas too. Jason huffs, struggling to free himself; and Dick feels a pang of sympathy for the frustration so clearly visible on his face. Living on the streets for years has left Jason with a twitchy, jumpy, nature, and he has a passionate hatred for being pinned down; it’s just another way that he differs from Dick. 

Although, to be fair, Dick only likes being pinned down in certain situations. Situations he really shouldn’t start thinking about while having a teenage boy right underneath him. Dick hopes his flush can be put down to normal exertions, and forces his attention back to the new Robin. Jason growls but taps out, and Dick lets him up.

“So what happened to kicking my ass this time?” Dick says with a grin as he offers Jason a hand up off the floor. Jason begrudgingly takes it. 

“Shut up. I almost had you!” Jason huffs, looking away abruptly when Dick pulls his shirt up to wipe the dripping sweat away from his chin.

“Jay, you at no point _had me_.” Dick snorts, reaching down to pick up his towel from the edge of the mat; his shirt too damp to do anything but move the sweat around.

“Oh yeah? Well, you’ll regret it when I finally get my growth spurt, because I’m gonna be taller than you, and then I’ll kick your ass, dumbass.” Jason glares, turning on his heel and marching away to the showers, embarrassment obvious from the tenseness of his shoulders.

“Bring it on, little wing. Bring it on.” Dick laughs, wiping down his face with his towel, before padding after Jason at a much slower pace.

***

In retrospect, Dick wishes he’d taken Jason a little more seriously when he’d made that threat. It was the last time he’d seen him alive. Dick had been busy with the Team, and even though every time he’d seen Jason’s name on his phone leaving a message or a text, he’d never really found the time to respond back with anything more than a quick ‘Sorry, really busy right now. I’ll call back soon, I promise’. He’d never got around to it, and then it had been far, far, too late. Dick wishes he’d said something more, that he’d made the time and effort to have done more to make Jason feel he was loved, trusted and respected. Spent time with him and been the big brother he always told himself he’d be when he was less busy.

But he can’t. Because like Wally, Jason’s dead and gone.

He tried that little bit more with Tim as a result. More than the kid really wanted him to, he guesses. But Dick can’t lose another Robin, so Tim just has to deal with Dick’s overbearing protectiveness. Unlike Jason, Tim’s been forced into being on the Team regularly, and despite how often he claims he wants to be in Gotham, Dick can tell that Tim’s flourishing by being around other capes his own age. Regret over Jason dogs Dick’s heels anyway.

***

Dick falters as the mask is finally knocked away from the Red Hooded Ninja’s face. That long moment of distraction is all the man needs to kick Dick in the stomach and start running, mask discarded on the rooftop where it fell, baby still held in his arms. Dick wheezes through the powerful blow, but forces himself back to his feet and after him.

That he’s turned up in Gotham, either kidnapping a baby, or just having one in tow is alarming on its own... but his face. His face!

He can’t be, and yet... Dick’s pretty sure he is. Call it gut instinct, or years of training with the Bat, but something about how he moves, and the look on his face for the brief moment Dick saw it; the even briefer moment he got to stare into his gorgeous eyes, but Dick is sure. He knows. _It’s Jason_.

He shakes himself out of it, following the ninja over the rooftops until he melts into a deep patch of shadows, presumably to check on the baby in his arms, and Dick manages to catch up to them.

“Jason... It’s you, isn’t it?” Dick whispers, trying not to spook him.

“Grayson...” Jason says slowly, almost as if he’s not sure what the word means.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m Grayson.” Dick steps closer to the shadows; raising his hands up in front of him in the well know ‘no trouble here’ pose. “So, uh where did you get the baby?”

“Talia.” Jason says, blinking slowly. Dick wonders if Jason’s all there, the way he’s speaking slowly and monosyllabic.

“Talia gave you a kid?” Dick says, gently trying to encourage more from Jason.

“Bruce...” Jason stares at Dick with a fixed intensity.

“Bruce, yeah, that’s right... Bruce, we should get you to Bruce.” Dick nods interrupting him, taking another slow step towards Jason.

“No, you dumbass! I swear to fuck that Babs got all your braincells in that break up.” Jason rolls his eyes in an expression so familiar it’s actually painful to Dick. He’s struck with the urge to hug Jason tight and never let him go. He’s getting a second chance here, and he’s not going to let himself fuck it up this time too. And Jason’s very familiar exasperation with him proves that this is the same kid they lost. No one could fake that instant attitude of ‘why me?’ mixed with the haughty disdain that Jason always had with him for not being as good as everyone else said Dick was. “Talia and Bruce _fucked_ , nine months of growing later this little bundle of terror was born, and now that the Light’s after Talia and Ra’s, I’m supposed to bring him to his dad.”

“Oh.” Dick couldn’t feel more like the rug’s been pulled out from under him right now. He’d be more sure footed if an actual rug had been yanked out from beneath his feet. Jason’s alive, Talia and Bruce have maybe had a kid; and Jason’s here with that kid, breaking Dick’s mind easier than M’Gann could ever do.

“Yeah. _Oh_.” Jason sighs, stepping forwards out of the shadows. “So, I’m guessing there’s no fucking getting rid of you now, right?”

“Absolutely not, little wing.” Dick says, pulling on his performer’s smile and shoving down the welter of ‘what the absolute fuck?’ that passes for his thoughts right now. There’s too much to unpack here, and that’s not even touching on the physical changes Dick can see in Jason.

“Don’t call me that.” Jason gripes, glaring down at Dick.

“Huh.” Dick mutters, Jason’s eye line is a little above Dick’s, and looking up to meet it is just the latest in a long line of weirdness tonight.

“What?” Jason asks suspiciously.

“I should have listened to you that last time we spoke.” Dick says with a shrug and a wry smile. “You did get taller than me, _and_ you just kicked my ass while holding a baby. I’m impressed.”

“True.” Jason grins viciously and a strange thrill coils in Dick’s stomach at the sight.

“I kind of want to see what else you’re better at now too.” Dick says without thinking, taking in the breadth of Jason’s shoulders, and the solid muscles of his biceps. He’s finally grown into his hands and feet, and it’s a little odd to see them be in proportion to the rest of his body. Dick’s gaze slips down to Jason’s powerful thighs, bringing heat to Dick’s face, and he has to look away. He glances at the baby, and feels a weird sour pang in his chest. Oh god, he’s jealous of the baby because Jason’s holding him and not _Dick_.

“What?” Jason looks at him, brows drawn together in confusion.

“What?” Dick says guilelessly. If he plays dumb then maybe Jason will let it go. Unlikely, but maybe!

“Are you flirting with me?” Jason stares at him, looking almost offended that Dick might dare to do so.

“What! No.” Dick sputters, taking in Jason’s amused look and loose body language at his flailing. “Unless it’s working in which case... Maybe?”

“How you ever got a girl to date you is a mystery, big bird.” Jason says shaking his head. 

“My wit, my charm, my good looks, the fact I’m a superhero... I could go on.” Dick quips, ignoring the disappointment that Jason’s not interested.

“Please don’t. You’re annoying the baby, and he bites when he’s not happy.” Jason sighs, shifting said baby who’s sleeping like, well, a baby. “Hard. He draws blood. I don’t know how, he doesn’t even have any teeth yet.”

“Clearly.” Dick says, a real smile slipping onto his face at Jason’s comment. “Don’t want the baby to bite you. I’d feel bad.”

“No, you wouldn’t.” Jason snorts, walking over to the fire escape and nodding at it. “You’d point and laugh.”

“No, that’s what you’d do.” Dick walks over to the fire escape and mentally calculates how far away his bike is. Except they have a baby and they can’t put _the baby_ on Dick’s bike. “Uh. I’m going to need to contact Oracle to get us home.”

“What-the-fuck-ever.” Jason mutters, looking uncomfortable but starting his descent down to the street. “Isn’t it weird to work with your ex?”

“No. We worked out we were better friends than we were as a couple.” Dick shrugs, taking the steps down the fire escape lightly but quickly. “It’d be weirder not to work with her.” 

“Huh.” Jason says, but makes no further comment. Dick takes the opportunity to contact Babs, who promptly tells him a car will be waiting for him in the street within two minutes. Dick has enough time to send her a sheepish emoji, and a thank you before Jason turns to him with a raised eyebrow.

“Car’ll be here in two minutes.” Dick tells him, taking in all the changes from his little wing to now. It’s not just the growth of height and bulk, it’s experience too. There’s a look in Jason’s eyes that Dick can’t quite name. Jason’s seen things. Bad things. He died and came back and that has to change a person.

“Fine. Here hold this.” Jason says shoving the baby at him and Dick has no choice but to take him or drop him. “I’m driving.”

“Uh... No?” Dick tries and Jason turns to give him a look. It makes Dick’s insides melt and he pulls the baby deeper into his arms to cover up how flustered he feels. “As a responsible older person...”

“You’re holding Damian because you’re the responsible older person.” Jason interrupts him. “I’m driving.” 

“Uh. Damnit. Fine.” Dick sighs, not wanting to fight with Jason when he’s holding an infant _and_ only just got Jason back. “Hi Damian! I’ve heard you bit Jason, and I want to say good job on that, little buddy.”

“Oh fuck you, Grayson.” Jason huffs, staring out along the street for the car.

“But I thought my flirting with you didn’t work?” Dick jokes carelessly.

“You. Are. Holding. A. Baby. Grayson.” Jason grits out. “Have a little class.”

“Aww.” Dick pouts, biting back a grin at getting under Jason’s skin.

“At least wait until we’re back at the Manor to proposition me.” Jason shakes his head. “Or until I’m pinning you down to the training mats.”

“Uh...” Dick’s mind blanks out at the thought of Jason hovering over him.

“This time I really will have you.” Jason says staring at Dick with an intensity that makes Dick’s knees weak with want.

“Please do!” Dick says, losing himself to Jason’s bright gaze as their car pulls up, and Jason opens the door, ushering them in. “Please do.”


End file.
